TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, Jan. 9 (PIA) -- In recognition of the critical tasks that thousands of job order employees and contractual workers at the Capitol, the Executive Committee (Execom) of the Provincial Development Council (PDC) has approved a resolution endorsing to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) an ordinance putting up a supplemental budget for a post-holiday gratuity pay for these workers.

In its Execom meeting, the PDC, guided by its development roadmap and good governance principles, has added the additional priority initiative in 2022, for the benefits of the “behind the scene workers” in line with the recently issued Presidential Administrative Order No 3.

It may be recalled that Pres. Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos Jr., on Dec. 23 signed an order authorizing the grant of gratuity pay for qualified employees on contract of service (COS) or job order (JO) basis. 

The one-time gratuity pay is pro-rated according to the length of service rendered in the year: a maximum of P5,000 for those who have completed four months of service as of Dec. 15; P4,000 for those who have three months and not more than four months of service; P3,000 for those who served two months and not over three months of service; and P2,000 for those who have served less than two months of service. 

The same administrative order which recognizes the pivotal role of the JOs and COS employees in the delivery of government services amid the pandemic and the current socio-economic challenges also opened up the possibility of giving the pay to workers who were not in office but also those who worked in alternative work schedules.

The PDC proposed the supplemental requirement in Bohol’s Investment Program for 2022 the additional budget of P19.4 million as incorporated in the Supplemental Investment Program No. 9, now listed as another supplemental item in the current Local Development Investment Program for the province.

The investment plan complies with Joint Memorandum Circular No. 01-2007 and JMC No. 1 2016 of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), and the Department of Finance (DOF), and Budget Operations Manual (BOM) of the DBM, which mandates local government units (LGUs) to support all budgets with corresponding investment plans.

As provided in the AO, funding for the gratuity pay would be from available maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE) savings under the 2022 Annual Budget.

But this could not be withdrawn without the accompanying mechanism that enables the government to use the un-obligated funds, thus an Appropriation Ordinance authorizing the Supplemental Budget would be the next step.

PDC has favorably endorsed to the SP the proposed supplemental amount of P19,400,000 in Bohol’s Investment Program for a corresponding enabling ordinance that could allow the finance authorities to finally grant the incentive. (RAHC/PIA7 Bohol)